ISLAMABAD: Over 3,300 Pakistani companies joined the Dubai Chamber of Commerce (DCC) in the first quarter of 2023, confirmed the country’s top diplomat in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Friday, adding the development reflected the dynamism of Pakistani businesses and the increasing attractiveness of the UAE as an investment destination.
A total of 30,146 new companies joined the DCC during the first quarter, the chamber said in a statement issued this week. India topped the list with 6,717 new companies, followed by the UAE which registered 4,445 firms. Pakistan ranked third with 3,395 new business entities securing the DCC membership, showing a 59 percent increase from the first quarter of the last year. Overall, the number of Pakistani companies with the DCC has reached 40,315.
A statement quoted Mohammad Ali Rashed Lootah, the DCC president and CEO, as saying that the diversity of nationalities represented among the new companies highlighted the vibrancy of Dubai’s dynamic business environment.
“It is indeed a positive development that underscores the resilience and entrepreneurial potential of the Pakistani business community and diaspora,” Ambassador Faisal Niaz Tirmizi told Arab News over the phone from Abu Dhabi.
He said the development also underscored the strong economic fundamentals of UAE’s economy.
“UAE, under its able leadership, is focused on diversifying its economy through global economic partnerships and will present profitable business opportunities in different sectors in the medium term,” the envoy continued, adding that Dubai was an ideal place from where Pakistan could do business with other Gulf states and the rest of the Middle East.
“During the last year, the number of Pakistani expatriates increased from around 1.6 million to 1.8 million in the Emirates,” he informed while pointing out that Pakistanis were participating in every sector of UAE’s economy.
Tirmizi mentioned that many of those who had arrived in the Gulf country were entrepreneurs, doctors, engineers, bankers, and laborers.
Pakistan’s diplomatic mission facilitated the country’s businesses by maintaining an active liaison with the DCC and sharing new opportunities with the chambers in back home along with members of the Pakistani diaspora.
“In recent years, our trade linkages with the UAE have further expanded, which has encouraged entrepreneurs and businesses based in Pakistan to establish local offices and also register themselves with local chambers,” the ambassador said.
He noted the mission had played its due role in facilitating trade by addressing issues such as the non-tariff barriers.
The embassy also brought several Pakistani firms, belonging to healthcare, food, information technology, tourism and other sectors, to attend trade fairs.
“These events provide entrepreneurs with much needed exposure to markets in the UAE, and many businesses have subsequently established their presence in Dubai,” he added.
Tirmizi said the Pakistani mission had also played its role in fast-tracking a bilateral economic partnership agreement with the UAE which would be signed by the end of September.
“This agreement presents potential opportunities in both goods and services sectors,” he informed. “Businesses, it seems, are positioning themselves to take full advantage of this partnership.”
Speaking to Arab News, Fakhruddin Diwan, chairman of the Pakistan-UAE business council at the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI), agreed the inclusion of more Pakistani companies in the DCC was a huge achievement.
“With this opening of the UAE market for Pakistani products, we will automatically be able to strengthen our foreign reserves due to an increase in exports,” he told Arab News.
He maintained that Dubai was a hub of international activities and tourism, adding it would also increase the exposure of Pakistani companies to a much wider consumer base across the globe.
Pakistan records over 3,300 company registrations in Dubai Chamber of Commerce in 2023
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Pakistan records over 3,300 company registrations in Dubai Chamber of Commerce in 2023
- Business community says the development has opened the entire Middle Eastern market to Pakistani products
- Pakistan registered the third highest number of companies with the DCC after India and the United Arab Emirates
Security forces kill four militants in Pakistan’s volatile southwest, military says
- Balochistan, Pakistan’s largest province by land area bordering Iran and Afghanistan, has long been the site of a low-level insurgency
- The Balochistan government has recently established a threat assessment center to strengthen early warning, prevent ‘terrorism’ incidents
ISLAMABAD: Pakistani security forces gunned down four militants in an intelligence-based operation in the southwestern Balochistan province, the military said on Tuesday.
The operation was conducted in Balochistan’s Kalat district on reports about the presence of militants, according to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the Pakistani military’s media wing.
The “Indian-sponsored militants” were killed in an exchange of fire during the operation, while weapons and ammunition were also recovered from the deceased, who remained actively involved in numerous militant activities.
“Sanitization operations are being conducted to eliminate any other Indian-sponsored terrorist found in the area,” the ISPR said in a statement.
There was no immediate response from New Delhi to the statement.
Balochistan, Pakistan’s largest province by land area bordering Iran and Afghanistan, has long been the site of a low-level insurgency involving Baloch separatist groups, including the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) and the Balochistan Liberation Front (BLF).
Pakistan accuses India of supporting these separatist militant groups and describes them as “Fitna Al-Hindustan.” New Delhi denies the allegation.
The government in Balochistan has also established a state-of-the-art threat assessment center to strengthen early warning and prevention against “terrorism” incidents, a senior official said this week.
“Information that was once scattered is now shared and acted upon in time, allowing the state to move from reacting after incidents to preventing them before they occur,” Balochistan Additional Chief Secretary Hamza Shafqaat wrote on X.
The development follows a steep rise in militancy-related deaths in Pakistan in 2025. According to statistics released by the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies (PICSS) last month, combat-related deaths in 2025 rose 73 percent to 3,387.
These included 2,115 militants, 664 security forces personnel, 580 civilians and 28 members of pro-government peace committees, the think tank said.
